Page 19 of The Last Safe Place

Taking foreign currency, securities, savings bank books or other valuables, in particular gold and silver items of all kinds, is strictly prohibited. A married person is permitted to take only a wedding band.

So it had really come this far – she was going to be deported. One had to give the Nazis credit; they were efficient. Less than forty-eight hours had passed since Dieter’s death.

Overwhelmed by a fresh wave of grief, tears flowed down her cheeks and the words blurred before her eyes. After a few minutes, she wiped her face and looked at the wedding ring on her finger. Was she still even regarded as a married person?

The very idea of having to give up this last, eternal bond to Dieter pained her so much that she curled up as if she had been kicked in the stomach.

No, she wouldn’t give them up, neither her own wedding ring, nor Dieter’s, which she wore on a cord around her neck. She simply couldn’t. She’d rather follow her husband in death.

For a few minutes she sat motionless in the chair, contemplating whether she should take her own life, and how she could best do it, until a faint voice in her mind asked, “What will become of us, Mama?”

Her two daughters Ilse and Eva had so far largely been spared persecution because they lived far away from Berlin with their aunt, Carola. What would happen to them now? Would they be deported too?

Michaela closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. No, she wouldn’t give up without a fight. She had to keep going, if not for her own sake, at least for the sake of her daughters.

With a heavy heart, she got up and walked to the nearest coin-operated telephone, where she called her sister-in-law. Yesterday she hadn’t found the strength, but today she had to tell Dieter’s sister Carola the sad news.

“Carola Kronberg,” said a voice at the other end of the line.

“It’s me, Michaela.”

“Has something happened?”

“Unfortunately, yes.”

A heavy silence ensued, as Carola had been aware her brother was dying.

“Dieter has passed away.”

“I had a feeling. He came through it,” said Carola helplessly.

Tears constricted Michaela’s throat and she had to swallow several times before she could continue speaking. “That’s not all. This morning I received the order to report to an assembly point for deportation.”

A groan sounded down the line. “What about Ilse and Eva?”

“They weren’t mentioned in the letter. I think they’re safe for now.”

“Thank God.” Carola had no children of her own and loved her nieces like her own flesh and blood. “You’re not going, are you?”

“What else can I do?

“Disappear. Hide.”

“But where?” Michaela suddenly felt old and tired. She didn’t have the strength to live underground.

“I’d offer you?—”

“No. That’s far too dangerous. It would lead the Gestapo straight to my daughters.”

“You’re right, of course. Could one of Dieter’s friends maybe…?”

Most of Dieter’s Aryan friends had turned their backs on him years ago. Michaela shook her head before muttering, “Highly unlikely.”

“Maybe one of your former patients?”

“I’ll give it some thought. Give my daughters a big kiss from me. I’ll call again as soon as I know more.”

“Take care.”